Watt takes second in Monaco

Australia's Mitchell Watt suffered his first defeat of 2012 when he finished second in the men's long jump at the Monaco leg of the Diamond League.

Watt leapt 8.12 metres to be runner-up to 2008 Olympic champion Irving Saladino of Panama, who won with a season's best of 8.16m.

Great Britain's Chris Tomlinson was third with 8.01m in what was the final Diamond League meet before the Olympics.

Watt produced a season's best of 8.28m to win the Crystal Palace Diamond League last week, but his loss in Monaco has done nothing to dint his confidence ahead of the London Olympics.

"I'm definitely not disappointed, that's exactly why I came here tonight, to iron those things out and pick up a couple of Diamond League points," he said.

"I've won three competitions and come second in one in my international preparation, which I definitely would've taken six months ago especially when I was hardly touching a track back then, so I'm extremely happy with where I am right now."

Watt's countryman Jarrod Bannister finished fourth in the men's javelin with a best throw of 81.19m. Ukraine's Oleksandr Pyatnytsya won with a final throw of 82.25m and Olympic silver medallist Vadims Vasilevskis of Latvia claimed second with 81.90m.

Another Australian, Youcef Abdi, was 10th in the men's 3,000m steeplechase with a time of 8:32.86.

Meanwhile, American hurdler Aries Merritt and Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare showed that they are in prime form and real threats to the big-name favourites at the London Olympics with impressive victories.

Merritt roared to yet another sub-13 second victory in the 110m hurdles, while Okagbare chalked up a second successive sub-11 second run to beat another clutch of Olympic hopefuls in the women's 100m.

Yelena Isanbeyva, hoping for a third successive Olympic pole vault title in London, had a night to forget however, as she failed three times at her opening height of 4.70m.

The 2012 Olympic 110m hurdles has long been viewed as one of the potential highlights of the track and field program, based on another showdown between China's Liu Xiang and Cuban Dayron Robles, but Merritt's performances in recent weeks have ensured it will be much more than a two-man show.

After Liu pulled out injured from the final at a cold and wet Crystal Palace a week ago, Merritt won in 12.93 and he ran the same world-leading time for the third time in three weeks in Monaco.

Fellow American Jason Richardson was second in 13.07, with Russia's Sergie Shubenkov (13.09) edging out another American, Beijing bronze medallist David Oliver, for third.

Okagbare is another looking to gatecrash the party at London and she underlined her potential to become Nigeria's first Olympic 100m medallist with another personal best victory.

Having broken 11 seconds for the first time last week en route to taking the scalps of world champion Carmelita Jeter and Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce at Crystal Palace she improved again in more favourable conditions to post 10.96.

Tianna Madison, who will also run in London, was second in 10.99 with fellow American Jeneba Tarmoh third in 11.09.

There was a Jamaican victory in the 200m but it was not by the man the organisers or the crowd had hoped for following the withdrawal of world record holder Usain Bolt due to a hamstring injury.

Nickel Ashmeade, one of many hugely talented athletes to miss out on London via the cut-throat Jamaican trials where he finished fourth, blasted round the bend and held on just enough to win in 20.02.

Churandy Martina, now running for the Netherlands, was second in 20.07 and Wallace Spearmon, who won the US trials, continued his timely improvement to take third in 20.09.

In the absence of another world record holder and London favourite, Kenya's David Rushida, two more talented young Kenyans, neither of whom were good enough to make their nation's team for the Olympics, took centre stage in the 800m.

In a terrific finish 19-year-old Abraham Rotich ran a personal best 1:43.13 to just pip 17-year-old Leonard Kosencha as the Rift Valley production line shows no sign of slowing down.